


Advice from the Dead

by Prince_Darkcloud, UnshadowedHeart



Category: Homestuck
Genre: F/M, light katnep, mentions of pale relationships, this was written like 2 years ago before everything went to shit we were so naive back then
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-23
Updated: 2014-12-23
Packaged: 2018-03-03 02:18:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,071
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2834558
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Prince_Darkcloud/pseuds/Prince_Darkcloud, https://archiveofourown.org/users/UnshadowedHeart/pseuds/UnshadowedHeart
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Karkat is hopping through dreambubbles, trying to escape everything that's going on in his reality when he stumbles upon an old furriend.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Advice from the Dead

Karkat hadn't been doing much, if not but just staying away from everyone else. All the ghosts and all his friends were so...difficult. He would be lying if he said he wasn't avoiding them. With all the excitement he felt like he had so little time to do what he really needed to. He was taking solace in just jumping through dream bubbles.

A young huntress' ears perked when she heard a rustling behind her. For some reason, the rustling seemed out of place, like it wasn't supposed to be there. She crouched down in the shadows, waiting for whatever was making the noise to step through the bushes. "The furrocious hunter sits back on her haunches," Nepeta whispered to herself, extending her claws. "The dangerous purredetor eagerly begins to stalk her purrey."

Karkat was stumbling through the brush, finding it rather difficult. He cursed, kicking at the bushes and the scratchy leaves. "Dammit!" He had been trying not to be angered by it, but it really did irritate the living hell out of him. He heard something that sounded like words coming from the bushes just a few feet away, but he ignored it. It was nothing.

Nepeta could hear someone grumbling to themselves. Her territorial instincts told her to attack the intruder, and she leapt from the bushes with a hiss, pouncing Karkat and tackling him to the ground. Only when she had her claws at his throat did she realize who it was. "Karkat!?" She quickly retracted her claws before beginning her inquiry. "What are you doing here? I thought you hated the jungle!"

Karkat screamed. Like a wriggler. "FUCK!" His eyes were wide as he stared up at Nepeta. _Nepeta._ "I...I..." Oh god, it was actually Nepeta! He had been wondering whose dream bubble this was. He had just been traipsing through them all. "I-I was just...wandering. Fuck."

"Wandering...?" Nepeta tilted her head, confused. Karkat didn't live anywhere near here, how could that— Oh...this was a dream bubble. Nepeta's bright eyes faded to white as she came to the realization. "The esteemed pouncellor is delighted to see her old furrend, and notices with concern that he seems troubled."

Karkat crossed his arms, staring down at his feet. "...The esteemed grump is welcoming of the concern and might be willing to share his troubles." He couldn't believe he was doing this. Of course, he did have a soft spot for Nepeta and her LARPing.

Nepeta grinned, hopping up to her feet. "The pouncellor invites you back to her cave for tea and a discussion about purresent affurs." She got up and took Karkat's hand and began to drag him in that direction.

Karkat didn't say anything, just following in silence. He was worried about some things, angered by others... This was actually a bit of a relief, honestly. Nepeta he could vent to, and she would be relatively objective.

Nepeta stepped inside her cave, putting the kettle on before getting comfortable in a pile of furs. She looked at Karkat, face falling into a bit of a frown. Karkat looked exhausted. She invited him to come sit beside her.

Karkat took a deep breath and sat down beside his friend. "Where am I—I mean... Where is the grumpified troll supposed to start in his riveting tales of anger and bullshit?"

"AC thinks that his royal grumpiness doesn't have to continue roleplaying fur her sake. She wants to know why he seems more moody than usual." She looked over at him with her wide, white eyes.

Karkat was glad for the break in roleplaying. He sighed and crossed his arms. "I'm getting worried about everyone, and...I haven't seen Gamzee in a while. He's just disappeared."

"You two are still moirails, right?" That was one ship that she'd been happy to see come to fruition. She was hoping she wouldn't have to make too many changes to her shipping wall. "Has something happened?"

Karkat fiddled with his thumbs. "I'm not sure if we're moirails anymore." It felt like their moiraillegiance was doomed the very moment that it had begun, almost; that they were destined to be ruined. "I try, goddamn, I mean fuck..."

"Well, the pale quadrant is tricky," she answered honestly, hopping up when the kettle whistled. Moiraillegiance was a narrow two-way street. It was a hard thing to maintain, especially if it was unbalanced. She brought over two steaming mugs and settled back in her pile, handing Karkat a mug. "What's been happening with you two?"

"Well... I papshooshed him into submission because he was going on riots and killing people, and..." He lost his words. "Relationships are fucking hard."

Nepeta thought about it for a moment. She'd had a fairly easy, if not occasionally frustrating relationship with Equius. It’d been work, but it hadn’t been a strain. "Well, they're not easy, but it shouldn't be a constant struggle either."

"I've had a goddamn constant tug-of-war with Gamzee and I swear I'm the only one who's getting dragged through the mud." Karkat buried his face into his arms. "Like I want to help him, I try really hard, but I can't- it's too- ...Hard." He could never hold onto his relationships very well.

Nepeta took a sip of her tea, licking her lips as she thought about it. "Do you think it's worth it? You and him..." She remembered how Feferi and Eridan were, how Feferi had practically torn herself apart trying to keep her palemate under control.

Karkat was unsure. He wanted this relationship, he _wanted_ to help Gamzee. But he was unsure if he could actively control him with the way they were going now. "Not if it's this one-sided."

"Well, he was looking out for you too, back before we entered the game." Well, sort of. Gamzee had done his best to keep Karkat calm. They hadn't been an official pale couple back then, but even so. All this talk of palemates made her miss Equius. "If it's not doing you any good...but these things are touchy. Dropping a moiraillegiance can be tricky... And I wouldn’t want to see you two break up either!"

"I know, I just wish he'd help me out more like- like he used to." Karkat wanted it to go back to the simplicity it had been before. When Gamzee would just calm him down, help him see the good. And no matter how much Karkat bitched, he loved those moments. No matter how stupid he claimed they were...

Nepeta still had mixed feelings about Gamzee. First off, she'd watched him murder her moirail: completely unacceptable. Second, he'd beaten her to death after snapping her wrist. However, he also filled the love of her life's pale quadrant. "AC would also like to see you two go back to the way you were."

"The esteemed grump just kind of wishes that the douchey clown would actively participate in his fucking relationship." Karkat took several deep breaths, looking to Nepeta. She seemed just as she had been when she had died. He missed her a lot. She was a good person to have around, good to talk to.

She let out one of her little giggles. "The proud huntress often felt the same about her overpurrtective moirail. That he would prevent her fun just beclaws he could." She took a moment to huff before going back to all seriousness. "Maybe Gamzee has a reason he's keeping away from you."

"Gee, that makes the grump feel fan-fucking-tastic after that great wit." Karkat sighed, deep and huffy. "Uh... The grump is sorry for being so snippy." He didn't want to hurt her feelings or anything. But it hurt to hear that Gamzee might have a reason  _not_ to want to be around him.

She thought about it for a moment. She'd heard a bit about what was going on in the world of the living, and suddenly an idea occurred. "Maybe...he doesn't want to hurt you? Any more than he already has, you know?"

"Oh." Well, that made him feel like one damn self-centered asshole. "Thanks...I guess. I shouldn't be so judgmental of the asshole I mean maybe he's hiding in the vents because he doesn't want to see anyone and murder them." Karkat included. Maybe he wasn't hiding in the vents to assassinate anyone. Hopefully.

Nepeta thought of the irony of it all. She thought of him scrambling around in the vents as she had that one fateful day. She wondered if she'd still be alive if she hadn't jumped out. Then again, she wouldn't have been able to live with herself if she hadn't at least tried to avenge Equius. "It's pawsible."

Karkat nodded, reaching out to awkwardly grope for her hand. When he found it he gave it a squeeze. "Thanks. You know, I always prided myself as a sort of expert on the quadrants, and relationships. But I guess I never really thought about what I'd do if my own relationships ended up god-awfully one-sided or unhealthy, or ever had a problem."

Nepeta's face flushed bright green as the warmth of his hand spread over hers. "W-Well...There's how relationships are supposed to be and how they are." Nepeta had watched the evolution of relationships from afar for so long that she felt like an expert on the matter.

Karkat didn't say anything, but he squeezed her hand experimentally. "Thanks for all this, again. Sorry for being a insufferable prick." He didn't mean to be such an asshole, not to someone who didn't deserve it anyway. Nepeta most definitely didn't deserve it.

"You're not insuffurable, Karkat." She insisted, taking his hand in both of hers. "You really care about your friends, and...I find that really admirable!"

Karkat tried not to blush, not wanting his blood color to show in his flushed cheeks. "You think I'm admirable?" He'd never thought of it like that. He assumed that he was a martyr sometimes, and his ancestor too... But nothing to warrant admiration.

Nepeta's entire face turned green with a blush. "I-I-I-" Her tail puffed up with embarrassment. "AC finds her friend to be an amazing purrson and she thinks his royal grumpiness is..." she couldn't finish her sentence. She was far too embarrassed.

"The esteemed grump is incredibly grateful to her imperial purrfection for shedding so much light on his problems." Karkat even deemed her worthy of a hug. Okay, she was most definitely worthy. He hugged her tight, not letting go.

Nepeta was sure Karkat could feel her beating heart through her chest. She wrapped her arms around him. Part of her brain was telling her that if her hands just dipped just a liiittle lower... No, no she musn't. This was a purrfect moment that shouldn’t be ruined by groping hands. "The Pouncellor...has been more than happy to help..."

Karkat only pulled back once there was no more hug to give. "Thanks a lot, Nepeta. Again, you've really helped a lot." Even if he still didn't know what the hell to do. He would just try and let it play out. It couldn't be that bad...right?

"I'm happy to help my furrends! Especially if it means not erasing anything on my wall." She fiddled with the sleeves of her coat, looking down and away. "I hope efurything works out for you. Your, um, other quadrants as well..."

Karkat just shrugged. "Not really any others. But thanks for the sentiment, despite how shitty it actually makes me seem." And how much of a loser he looked like. "I should probably wake up now..."

"You're not shitty. You're a great furriend, and people would be lucky to have you fill their quadrants." Nepeta steeled herself, taking Karkat's face between her hands, getting up on her tiptoes to plant a gentle kiss to his lips. He'd certainly grown in the past sweep. Not much, but enough. She pulled back with a grin, blushing a tad. "Yo, the fuck you doin? Wake up, dude."

...What the hell? Karkat looked down at his hands, and found himself becoming transparent. And then he was opening his eyes, staring up at Dave who was standing over him. Dammit... He'd just had...a real breakthrough. He grimaced as he stared up at Dave, arms crossing. "Strider." He paused for a moment. "...Do you think it's possible for you to have a matespritship with someone that’s already dead?"


End file.
